DENMARK: AN EXPERIMENT STATION 113 



controlled the English market. They controlled the 

 bacon industry. So the farmers organized a selling 

 agency of their own known as the Danish Bacon 

 Company of London. It immediately destroyed the 

 meat trust and in addition it assured the farmer 

 a sure market for his produce. Banking is also a 

 co-operative undertaking. There are 536 co-opera- 

 tive savings-banks in the country whose deposits 

 amounted to $208,500,000 in 1906. The farmer also 

 buys at cost. He buys through central agencies in 

 Copenhagen, which then distribute the commodities 

 to the various co-operative selling societies scat- 

 tered all over the state. The farmer buys food for 

 his cattle in this way. He buys his machiner}^ as 

 well as his own household supplies. A co-operative 

 store is to be found in every village. The turn-over 

 of the purchasing societies alone in 1907 amounted 

 to $17,500,000. The farmer also buys and now 

 manufactures his own fertilizer by co-operation. 

 There are peasant canning factories, creameiy sup- 

 ply companies, as well as co-operative organiza- 

 tions for the insurance of live stock against hail and 

 other storms. As a matter of fact, there is scarcely 

 an activity or a need that is not covered by one 

 or more co-operative associations. And there is 

 scarcely a line of agricultural economy that is not 

 promoted by the state or by an organization de- 

 signed for this purpose. 



Co-operation is another expression of home- 



